One thing is for sure: any plan based on restricting access to cheap fuel is doomed to fail from the start, so we have no other choice but to address the problem and create long-term, sustainable solutions.

For as long as oil and gas extraction is taking place, it is right to tax it heavily. These taxes should rightfully be paying to mop up the Thames Valley and the Somerset levels, for sea walls and flood defences wherever our communities need them.

The current governmental landscape betrays a belief that it is possible to run with the hare and the hounds ad infinitum when it comes to energy, and this simply isn't the case. Giving with one hand and taking with the other not only demonstrates a disingenuous attitude that further belittles trust, it also harms investment and makes us less competitive on the world stage.

With accelerated changes to our climate, urgent action is required by the EU to end all tax breaks for aviation. The tax loopholes have no demonstrable benefit for European citizens, also apply to foreign tourists and airlines and lead to all of us, rich and poor, to involuntarily subsidise those who fly through lower take home pay.

Over the last five years, the terms 'Climate Change' and 'Carbon Footprint' have increasingly become a part of everyday vocabulary. It therefore seems bizarre that so few people understand, or have even heard of, the concept of Carbon Credits; the most effective way for large companies to battle climate change.